Program Details
Facility
WSD is fortunate to have the top engineers of Hogan Construction on our project. The school will be a crowning jewel in the vast portfolio of schools Hogan has built. It is the most ambitious and unique facility of any Charter School in Utah and will rival that of many top school designs nation-wide. Construction is on-track with much of the building being stored off site. Hogan is financially responsible for the timely and safe opening of our facility and is fully dedicated to our anticipated start date at end of August 2010. Traffic Concerns For the residents living off Kilby Road who have concerns about how their lives will be impacted by WSD, it is important to understand Kilby Road is not intended for drop off. The unique property with its slope and wetlands has dictated the design not only of our school, but also of the parking and flow model for drop off and pick up. All plans have been approved by the State Office of Education and local and state Fire Marshals. WSD will have a road off of Kilby that loops to a lower parking lot where our staff will assist with a staggered drop off and pick up schedule, allowing for maximum ease and the least amount of traffic on Kilby Road.
Transportation
Our committees are looking into services and costs for busing and potential options for transportation assistance. We are not promising a solution for the fall of 2010, but are hopeful to reach a solution for those needing transportation as the 2010 -2011 year progresses. An effort by WSD will be made to encourage an organized car pool system with families interested in participating.
Play Spaces for All Students
Our 11.4 acres will be utilized as outdoor classroom space and recreation. Kindergarten has its own separate outdoor playground connected to the kindergarten classroom area. For older students, there are two courtyard spaces with concrete geometric forms on both paved and planted surfaces for creative play and gathering. WSD also has a designated meadow space for play and study. Our plans to cut a trail system into our hillside are in development with the plan for offering biking, snow shoeing, hiking and cross country skiing as part of our Outdoor Education Program.
General Program
WSD will accommodate all students with Special Needs, IEP programs and speech and behavioral issues with highly qualified and dedicated professionals in the area of Special Education. WSD believes every student and every person has different styles of learning. All teachers at WSD are committed to identifying learning differences and providing individualized instruction for each student, in order to ensure highest success for all students.
Our curriculum for language arts and math will draw from different successful models and the pedagogical expertise and passions of our teachers. We are not interested in utilizing one specific curriculum as a school, as programs can limit opportunities for instruction, creativity in teaching, and students’ discovery. Instead, WSD will be a program utilizing the best in traditional instruction fueled by the passion and knowledge of our Master Teachers. WSD will not have a centralized library, but each suite of learning studios will contain a collection of literature appropriate to all levels of reading. WSD will have numerous extracurricular programs that will include opportunities to visit our resorts and activity centers. Our full week with a full-day Friday schedule will allow for an expansive academic program along with an Outdoor P.E. Program, Community Service, a full Arts Program, an extensive Science Program, as well as Foreign Language. WSD will cover the Utah Core Curriculum for each grade level but go beyond the basic state requirements. Our Arts Curriculum will allow for music study in chorus and singing performance, dramatic performance, and comprehensive visual art study in all media including ceramics. Musical Instruments will be incorporated into our program as funding goals are met. We are currently formulating our for cost after school offerings with goals for instrumental music study, as well as other enrichment classes including foreign language study.
Technology Program
Technology will be integrated into the curriculum at WSD and thus part of each students’ daily classroom life. It's not about force-feeding digital content, but rather placing the student at the center of the experience and paying close attention to their needs, aspirations, and behaviors. Appropriate technology tools will assist in leading them through a set of experiences that make learning--rich. WSD will be an all-Mac school. Tools such as interactive white boards, web-based surveys, student response systems, assessment software, digital video recorders, blogs, wikis, online quizzes, and simulation are just a sample of the technologies teachers and students will use.
Technology will enhance formative assessment, which involves not only measuring the students’ progress, but also giving teachers and learners new strategies that will allow them to be successful. Faculty and staff will take part in hands-on technology workshops during the summer where new tools, open education resources and curriculum integration will be introduced. A scheduled planning period every couple weeks during the school year with each grade team and Director of Education Technology will be required. The meetings are to coordinate the instruction, ensure curriculum integration and divide the responsibilities for the teaching. Students will use these tools not only in a specialized learning lab, but also daily in the classroom. Small peer groups and computer-based individualized instruction will enhance and add to the homeroom instruction. Learning lab class activities will relate both in parallel and as an extension to specific homeroom activities. At times, standalone technology activities, such as typing and skills building will take place for homeroom projects.
Technology integration will take place over a 3 year period beginning with grades 6,7 and 8, followed by 3,4 and 5 and finally K-2. This does not mean technology will be absent from grades K-5, just that the initial investment, roll-out and specific resources will be focused first for grades 6-8. We are currently in process of selecting science, technology, engineering and math software and hardware that extends a participatory learning environment and is evidence-based.
Middle School Program
For our Middle School students, we will meet all requirements for a seamless transfer to Treasure Mountain in ninth grade. WSD is interested in becoming an IB program, with an interim plan to offer the Community Service, CTE and Foreign Language requirements for current IB students. Specialists in Science, Art, Music, Foreign Language, English, History and Technology will teach Middle School students. Middle School students will have their own designated learning suite of academic classrooms, lockers, individual schedules, and a rotation of classes as in other middle schools. WSD has two sections each of sixth, seventh and eighth grade students of approximately one hundred and fifty students. Students will utilize academic classrooms, arts studios, the science lab, music rooms, indoor amphitheater and the outdoors. Middle School students will have opportunities to participate in Student Council, a School Newspaper, a School Arts Website, Science Fairs, Community Service and other Special Projects. The faculty and students will work together to design the extra curricular activities, traveling interims, and clubs for Middle School. WSD will place students in math classes according to previously completed courses, and testing at the beginning of the school year. Our math curriculum will be a combination of traditional teaching with technology, allowing students to work at their own pace and to master the material. Students will be able to take the needed time to master the material or to advance quickly. Students will demonstrate their progress with technology and traditional assessment. Teachers will instruct in whole groups and small-groups to meet the individual needs of each student. Middle School students will also enjoy a large measure of independence, social interaction, exciting programs unique to Middle School and community-based experiences.
Fifth grade and above will have strings, band, and choral instruction.
We do not have an Industrial Arts studio in our current facility. Opportunities for this exist at Treasure Mountain and the Park City High School.
Our Middle School will be a separate but integral part of the entire WSD program. As in other K – 8 programs, our older students will have special responsibilities related to our student body with expectations for interaction, mentoring and leadership of the younger grades. Middle School students will work to their highest potential academically whilemaintaining balanced, healthy lives that include many enrichment opportunities outside of classroom work. Homework will encourage individual discovery, mastery of skills, test preparation and the furthering of individual interest in subjects. WSD will not have “busy work” and will instead promote authentic learning assignments relevant to intellectual growth. Due to the small size of our Middle School and the enhanced academic expectations stemming from private school and top-flight public school models, WSD’s Middle School will be a unique program in Park City not easily compared to other programs. While WSD will cover the basics, our curricula will extend beyond commonly held expectations for Middle School students. WSD strives to draw students into a deep relationship with subjects as they identify themselves as scholars, artists, musicians, and members of their community and environment.
